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Event Highlights:

 

In addition to all the wonderful activities aboard the ms Westerdam and in port, this exclusive Nation event includes:

  • Private seminars and ad-hoc sessions
  • Access to, and dining with guest speakers
  • Private receptions
  • Traveling with like-minded Nation readers
  • All-inclusive pricing
  • A fully escorted cruise
  • And much more...

Photos from a past Nation cruise: ( Visit our Photo Gallery )

Brainstorming session

Listeners during Panel Discussion

Sample Schedule of Events from a past Nation cruise:

 

Dec. 6th - Saturday - Tampa, FL - Embarkation
TBA  Lifeboat drill (mandatory)
5:00pm  Veendam sails
7:00-8:00pm  Private Nation cocktail party - Poolside/Lido Deck - Be sure to wear your name badges!
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.

Dec. 7th -  Sunday - Key West, FL
8:30-9:00am  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge (Promenade Deck)
9:00-11:30am   Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Welcome: Victor Navasky
Topic: The Media:  Truth, Lies and Democracy
Moderator: Katrina vanden Heuvel
Panelists: Laura Flanders, Eric Alterman, Farai Chideya, Frank McCourt
11:30am  eendam arrives (dock)
5:00-7:00pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
6:00pm  Veendam departs (time subject to change)
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.

Dec. 8th - Monday - At Sea
8:30-9:00am  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge
9:00-11:30am  Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Topic: Toward a New American Foreign Policy
Moderator: David Corn
Panelists: Katrina vanden Heuvel, Jonathan Schell, Eric Alterman, Amos Elon
1:30-2:00pm  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge
2:00-4:00pm  Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Topic: What's Missing, What Matters:  Election 2004
Moderator: Katha Pollitt
Panelists: David Corn, Farai Chideya, Calvin Trillin, Jonathan Schell, Eric Alterman
4:15-4:45pm  Topic: The State of The Nation Magazine
Speaker: Victor Navasky
5:00-7:00pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
7:30pm  Join other Nation guests at the Crow's Nest Lounge for cocktails and dancing before dinner! (Optional)
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.

Dec. 9th  - Tuesday - Belize City, Belize
8:00am  Veendam arrives
2:00-6:00pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
5:30-6:00pm  Nation Help Desk - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
6:00pm  Veendam departs (time subject to change)
7:30pm  Join other Nation guests at the Crow's Nest Lounge for cocktails and dancing before dinner! (Optional)
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.

Dec. 10th  - Wednesday - Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala
6:00am  Veendam arrives
2:00-6:00pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon/Hudson Rooms
5:30-6:00pm  Nation Help Desk - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
6:00pm  Veendam departs (time subject to change)
7:30pm  Join other Nation guests at the Crow's Nest Lounge for cocktails and dancing before dinner! (Optional)
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.

Dec. 11th  - Thursday - Cozumel, Mexico
8:30-9:00am  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge
9:00-10:00am  Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Topic: One-on-One with Frank McCourt and Calvin Trillin
Interviewer: Calvin Trillin
10:15-11:45am  Topic: Let's Hear from the Audience Fifty Ways to Defeat George W. Bush in 2004:
What Every Progressive Can Do
Facilitator: Victor Navasky
This will be an open discussion addressing pro-active ways progressives can help defeat George Bush in 2004. Ideas will be taken from the audience by the facilitator.
1:00pm  Veendam arrives (dock)
4:00-6:00pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
7:30pm  Join other Nation guests at the Crow's Nest Lounge for cocktails and dancing before dinner! (Optional)
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served.
11:30pm  Veendam departs (time subject to change)

Dec. 12th  - Friday - At Sea
8:30-9:00am  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge
9:00-11:30am  Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Topic: A Debate
Withdraw or Stay: The US Occupation and a Democratic Middle East
Moderator: Victor Navasky
Panelists: Jonathan Schell, Amos Elon, David Corn, Laura Flanders
2:00-2:30pm  Nation Help Desk - Rubens Lounge
2:30-5:00pm  Nation Panel - Rubens Lounge
Topic: What's Up with Women?
Moderator: Calvin Trillin
Panelists: Laura Flanders, Katha Pollitt, Farai Chideya
5:30-6:30pm  Nation Ad-hoc Session - Half Moon & Hudson Rooms
7:00-8:00pm  Private Nation cocktail party - Poolside/Lido Deck
8:15pm  Late Seating dinner is served

Dec. 13th  - Saturday - Tampa, FL - Debarkation
7:00am  Veendam arrives
8:00-9:30am  Debarkation begins

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 Meet your escorts:

 

 Your cruise with The Nation features escorts provided by The Cruise Authority. These escorts are along to ensure that every aspect of your cruise is enjoyable. Should you have any problems or issues,please do not hesitate to contact one of these professionals while on board this cruise. A help desk will be scheduled each day.

The Cruise Authority is an award winning cruises-only travel agency, based in Atlanta,GA, which specializes in putting on large group events like this one. The Cruise Authority has received considerable recognition for its focus on customer satisfaction and attention to detail.

 

David Bittner
 Co-Owner of The Cruise Authority,  David has been on over 50 cruises and has 10 years experience in the cruise industry. He is an avid scuba diver and runner. David has a wife, a daughter 7 years old, and son 4 years old.

 

Cathy Hart
Group Operations Manager of The Cruise Authority. Cathy has been with
The Cruise Authority for over 4 years. She and her husband have one
teenage son with whom they enjoy scuba diving and cycling.

 

Angelika Landis
Angelika Landis is a member The Cruise Authority's Group Management team. She decided to turn her passion for travel into her occupation and has organized and escorted groups around the world for almost 20 years. She has sailed with groups through the Valleys of the Nile River, the never-ending Amazon; cruised around Cape Hope, into the Fjords of New Zealand and Alaska.
Her hobbies include photography and exotic gourmet cooking.

 

Charles Bittner
Charles is a veteran of the last 8 Nation cruises. He represents The Nation's scholastic programs as Academic Liaison. His passions include liberal politics, music, and motorcycles. When not attending academic conferences on behalf of The Nation, Charles lives in Atlanta with his Yorkshire Terrier named Paulie.